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You may be drawing a blank because there was very little Uhura to go on prior to the 2009 movie. As far as I can tell both versions had a fondness for Spock and both were communications experts. They've thankfully eliminated all traces of "I'm scared, Captain!" from her character.

We haven't seen nuUhura do a fan dance or sing yet, but there's still time for that.

Well lets see. They left in she was black and communications officer...after that I draw a blank. There are no other similarities between the two characters.

I see that you did not even attempt to list elements of the character which were left out, and that's understandable, considering that the old version of Uhura was a cypher, barely a character at all, with no identifiable traits except for her gender and ethnicity.

Location: La Belle Province or The Green Mountain State (depends on the day of the week)

Re: Uhura replacing McCoy/Bones?

UFO wrote:

The Mirrorball Man wrote:

I see no "drastic changes". We've just focused on Uhura a little bit for the first time ever, so the character comes off as more personated and better defined than she used to be, but there's nothing about the new Uhura that makes her dramatically different from the original Uhura, except for the fact that the character is played by a different actress and that it's not the 1960's anymore.

To quote the great John McEnroe: "You CAN NOT be serious!" Now I have heard it said the two McCoys are rather similar. They must be who you are thinking of.

Charlie Kelly wrote:

The Mirrorball Man wrote:

She raised the issue with her superior officer, the one who made the decision in the first place.

Yeah and the way I saw it Spock was trying to appear fair by being unfair to her and he would have given her the posting on the Enterprise had they not being going out. She had every right to complain about that.

As I have said before (or if not I should have!), if Spock was so concerned about an obvious potential conflict of interest (a bit late btw) he should have excused himself from making Uhura's assignment. Now, especially in what was clearly a temporary assignment (where-after they should have all gone back to the academy to complete their damned training ), Uhura had no right to question her posting. There could easily have been a good reason for placing her on a another ship. Besides, if you start by letting people choose their own favourite billets (no matter how "entitled" and full of their own importance they are), where will it end?

It will end wherever the filmmakers say. There are many aspects of the Trek movie that I consider ripe for criticism but the idea that it is any less "realistic" in it's depiction of military-like protocols than any previous iteration of Trek is rather laughable.

To quote the great John McEnroe: "You CAN NOT be serious!" Now I have heard it said the two McCoys are rather similar. They must be who you are thinking of.

No, it's not. What aspects of the old Uhura were left out, in your opinion?

Well we could start with professionalism, a certain humility and yes, just plain "niceness".

But its more a matter of the undesirable character traits that were put in. Some have been mentioned by Bry_Sinclair. I would include his suggestions of "abrasive, snooty, cold" as well as self-centred and manipulative (have I mentioned "entitled" and full of her own importance?). You could probably add some yourself but I doubt anyone would suggest the two Uhuras are remotely similar characters in their behaviour or as people.

Ovation wrote:

UFO wrote:

... Besides, if you start by letting people choose their own favourite billets (no matter how "entitled" and full of their own importance they are), where will it end?

It will end wherever the filmmakers say.

Thanks for putting my mind at ease. I was a bit worried it could end with a cadet still under training and on his first mission, being handed command of a modern flagship because he happened to get lucky, or something.

There are many aspects of the Trek movie that I consider ripe for criticism but the idea that it is any less "realistic" in it's depiction of military-like protocols than any previous iteration of Trek is rather laughable.

Actually I wasn't comparing it to previous Trek. But even if you feel comfortable rolling out the "old trek was almost as bad at times" excuse (and assuming it's justified), are you sure the examples under discussion might not have been a good place to improve matters a tad? That said, I agree it's more the fact it doesn't make anyone involved look too good, rather than a potential military protocol problem, that is of most concern.

The Stig wrote:

Uhura's argument was this:

"Was I not your best student?"
"Am I not the best comm officer here today?"
"Then why the fuck aren't I assigned to the best ship?"

It's a valid point, and hardly blackmail. Spock erred on the side of caution and Uhura took issue with that. I found that far more endearing than the blank sheet that is old Uhura.

Despite that I think most people managed to form an opinion of the type of person old Uhura was. To me, nuUhura isn't that type.

And valid in what way?

For all Uhura knew, the ship she was assigned to may not have had a communications officer at all at that point and needed the best trainee available. That wouldn't have been a slight on her abilities, quite the reverse. And, once again, it should have been seen as a temporary assignment for the duration of the emergency. That was not a time to be throwing hissy fits. Such behaviour sure didn't endear her to me. Nor is that just due to not liking the movie. I have no problem with half the main characters (Spock is 50/50 ).

On the other hand perhaps respectfully asking a question might have been more acceptable, instead of the way she did it. Clearly Spock was right about his conflict of interest concerns when it came to the way they interacted. Unless she was like that with all her superior officers!

There are many aspects of the Trek movie that I consider ripe for criticism but the idea that it is any less "realistic" in it's depiction of military-like protocols than any previous iteration of Trek is rather laughable.

Actually I wasn't comparing it to previous Trek. But even if you feel comfortable rolling out the "old trek was almost as bad at times" excuse (and assuming it's justified), are you sure the examples under discussion might not have been a good place to improve matters a tad? That said, I agree it's more the fact it doesn't make anyone involved look too good, rather than a potential military protocol problem, that is of most concern.

The Stig wrote:

Uhura's argument was this:

"Was I not your best student?"
"Am I not the best comm officer here today?"
"Then why the fuck aren't I assigned to the best ship?"

It's a valid point, and hardly blackmail. Spock erred on the side of caution and Uhura took issue with that. I found that far more endearing than the blank sheet that is old Uhura.

For all Uhura knew, the ship she was assigned to may not have had a communications officer at all at that point and needed the best trainee available. That wouldn't have been a slight on her abilities, quite the reverse. And, once again, it should have been seen as a temporary assignment for the duration of the emergency. That was not a time to be throwing hissy fits. Such behaviour sure didn't endear her to me. Nor is that just due to not liking the movie. I have no problem with half the main characters (Spock is 50/50 ).

On the other hand perhaps respectfully asking a question might have been more acceptable, instead of the way she did it. Clearly Spock was right about his conflict of interest concerns when it came to the way they interacted. Unless she was like that with all her superior officers!

I agree. Trek has often been silly but two wrongs don't make a right!

These were temporary postings handed out in an emergency. If they were not, Spock would not have been the one dishing out his girlfriend's posting - it would have been deferred to somebody else with no personal relationship. Plus you would not fill up your flagship with trainees under normal circumstances. Uhura could have raised her request for a posting to the Enterprise when she returned. I for one would not have been averse to seeing Uhura and Gaila being rescued from an escape pod following the confrontation with Nero.

Spock was not unprofessional for posting her to another ship because in doing so he deferred the decision on them working together until somebody else could make that decision. Uhura was doing exactly what the system is designed to avoid - using her influence to circumnavigate the correct chain of command and in the process leaving another ship one communications officer short. It was a fun jokey moment but it doesn't paint the characters well.

Ultimately the decision not to post her to the Enterprise might have been wrong and rescinded later but in the circumstances, Spock acted correctly and Uhura did not.

Well we could start with professionalism, a certain humility and yes, just plain "niceness".

No offense meant, but I think that what you're doing here is filling in generic character traits in the void between two "hailing frequencies open, Captain".

I'm sure we would be mortal enemies by now if I had understood what you are implying!

However sufficient to say I have no problem with nuUhura having a more extensive skill set. It is simply her personal character traits (her attitude etc) that I see as very different. I take it your contention is that her personality is basicly the same?

I'm sure we would be mortal enemies by now if I had understood what you are implying!

The old Uhura had no personality, so you have filled in the blanks in your head and invented some personality traits for her. And now you're disappointed because the character you see on the big screen is not the character you had imagined.

I think a lot of men her intimidating by many Women...what is this? the 1800's?

Well yes, in lots of ways, this is still the 1800's. Is that news to you? Aren't you confronted with sexism where you live? As a society, we're moving towards equality but there's still a long way to go.

"Was I not your best student?"
"Am I not the best comm officer here today?"
"Then why the fuck aren't I assigned to the best ship?"

It's a valid point, and hardly blackmail. Spock erred on the side of caution and Uhura took issue with that. I found that far more endearing than the blank sheet that is old Uhura.

Despite that I think most people managed to form an opinion of the type of person old Uhura was. To me, nuUhura isn't that type.

And valid in what way?

For all Uhura knew, the ship she was assigned to may not have had a communications officer at all at that point and needed the best trainee available.

All the cadets stood and watched as the assignments were handed out. The film is fairly clear on the circumstances, so your supposition isn't really borne out by what we saw on screen.

That wouldn't have been a slight on her abilities, quite the reverse. And, once again, it should have been seen as a temporary assignment for the duration of the emergency. That was not a time to be throwing hissy fits. Such behaviour sure didn't endear her to me. Nor is that just due to not liking the movie. I have no problem with half the main characters (Spock is 50/50 ).

Spock was wrong. That's the only reasonable take-away from the scene in question. Uhura worked hard to get a posting on the Enterprise and didn't meekly accept a lesser posting when she knew that she deserved better. That's not a 'hissy-fit,' that's simply being assertive.

On the other hand perhaps respectfully asking a question might have been more acceptable, instead of the way she did it. Clearly Spock was right about his conflict of interest concerns when it came to the way they interacted. Unless she was like that with all her superior officers!

Uhura didn't make a scene, she didn't speak rudely or raise her voice. She asked Spock for a word and plead her case passionately. Compare with Kirk, who decided to simply attack Spock during an argument, and it's clear that your objections have far less to do with what Uhura did and far more with her gender.

__________________
Some say that if you get Amazon Prime he will hand-deliver your packages during a powerslide in a classic Jag and that he's paid with bottles of octane booster.

All we know is, he's not The Stig but he is The Stig's non-trademarked generic cousin.